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Grid infrastructureUnited KingdomEIR-0491

Second fire at Aberdeen Place substation, Maida Vale, disrupts London Underground and Elizabeth line

May 2025Published 7 Sept 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor

SignificantElectricalProvisional
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Where
Aberdeen Place substation, Maida Vale, north west London
Operator
UK Power Networks
What
Fire at high-voltage cabling, three metres destroyed
Cause
Not reported

Companies named in the reporting of this entry (being named is not a finding of fault): UK Power Networks

What happened

A fire broke out at an electrical substation in the Aberdeen Place area of Maida Vale, north west London, on 12 May 2025, around three weeks after a major blaze at the same site. London Fire Brigade received 16 calls and sent crews from Paddington and Harrow. High-voltage cabling connected to the substation was found alight, with around three metres of cabling destroyed. The associated power outage disrupted four London Underground lines and the Elizabeth line ahead of the afternoon rush hour, and affected hundreds of businesses south of Oxford Street.

Residents nearby were advised to keep windows and doors shut due to light smoke in the area. The earlier fire at the same substation, on 29 April 2025, involved 15 fire engines and around 100 firefighters, spread to part of a neighbouring residential roof, and led to 80 people being evacuated from nearby flats.

Contributing factors

The operator, UK Power Networks, stated that the earlier April fire was caused by a fault on a piece of equipment in the substation. The May fire occurred at the same site only weeks later, involving high-voltage cabling, though the specific cause of the second fire was not detailed in the source.

Lessons learned

  1. High-voltage cabling at a substation can ignite and spread quickly, so operators should inspect cabling runs for damage after any nearby fire.
  2. A second fire at the same substation weeks later points to possible repair gaps, so full equipment checks must precede return to service.
  3. A substation fault can cut power to multiple rail lines, so operators should verify backup feeds for transport hubs.

More lessons on spacing, layout and fire spread, outages, backup supply and restoration, from every incident on the register.

Not yet known

  • Cause of the May fire
  • Age and model of the cabling
  • Duration of the power outage
  • Cost of the disruption

This entry is updated when these are reported. Get an alert for the next one like it.

Source

lbc.co.uk

Other entries that name Aberdeen

Published 2026-09-07. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.

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